11/05/2012

‎"A year has (almost) passed and now we stand on the brink, of returning to a world where
we are surrounded by the paradox of everything and yet nothing being the
same.

In a couple of weeks we will reluctantly give our hugs
and, fighting the tears,we will say goodbye to people who were once just names
on a sheet of paper to return to people that we hugged and fought tears to say
goodbye to before we ever left.We will leave our best friends to return to our best
friends.We will go back to the places we came from, and go back
to the same things we did last summer and every summer before.We will come into town on that same familiar road, and
even though it has been months, it will seem like only yesterday.As you walk into your old bedroom, every emotion will
pass through you as you reflect on the way your life has changed and the person
you have become.You suddenly realize that the things that were most
important to you a year ago don't seem to matter so much anymore, and the things
you hold highest now, no one at home will completely understand.Who will you call first?What will you do your first weekend home with your
friends?Where are you going to work?Who will be at the party Saturday night?What has everyone been up to in the past few
months?Who from school will you keep in touch with?How long before you actually start missing people barging
in without calling or knocking?Then you start to realize how much things have changed,
and you realize the hardest part of being an exchange student is balancing the
two(/three) completely different worlds you now live in, trying desperately to hold on
to everything all the while trying to figure out what you have to leave
behind.We now know the meaning of true friendship.We know who we have kept in touch with over the past year
and who we hold dearest to our hearts.We've left our worlds to deal with the real
world.We've had our hearts broken, we've fallen in love, we've
helped our best friends overcome eating disorders, depression, stress, and
death. We've lit candles at the grotto and we've stayed up all night on the
phone just to talk to a friend in need.There have been times when we've felt so helpless being
hours away from home when we know our families or friends needed us the most,
and there are times when we know we have made a difference.Just weeks from now we will leave :(Just weeks from now we take down our pictures, and pack
up our clothes.No more going next door to do nothing for hours on end.
We will leave our friends whose random e-mails and phone calls will bring us to
laughter and tears this summer, and hopefully years to come.We will take our memories and dreams and put them away
for now, saving them for our return to this world.Just weeks from now we will arrive.Just weeks from now we will unpack our bags and have
dinner with our families. We will drive over to our best friend's house and do
nothing for hours on end.We will return to the same friends whose random emails
and phone calls have brought us to laughter and tears over the year.We will unpack old dreams and memories that have been put
away for the past year.In just weeks we will dig deep inside to find the
strength and conviction to adjust to change and still keep each other
close.And somehow, in some way, we will find our place between
these two worlds.In just weeks.Are you ready?"

04/05/2012

I can't believe I am running out of time. 2 months, 8 weeks, too little days.. What has my year been full of so far??

...other exchange students..

...going to school (yayy)...

...doing family stuff...

...changing myself...

...travelling/experiencing new things...

...parties...

...and so, so much more. I think leaving here will be the biggest heartbreak of my life :( I DON'T WANT TO GOOOOOOOOO I'm loving it way too much, everybody I meet, everything I do, eat, experience, try, everything changes the person I am for the best. It sucks to even think is such a little time I hve to leave it all behind...